FILM REVIEW: APOCALYPTO

Went to see the early show of Apocalypto last night; there were eight of us at it!

Basically, without giving anything away, this is the plot of the film. It is set in the time of the ancient Mayan civilisation, in the Amazon jungle. The film revolves around the central character “Jaguar Paw” and his tribe. Early in the film his village is wiped out and before he is captured he has time to hide his heavily pregnant wife and young son down an empty well. From this point the film centres on his attempts to escape to return home. Although that sounds remarkably simplistic I couldn’t possibly tell you any more without taking somewhat from your enjoyment of the film.

The director Mel Gibson , has used all unknown actors to play the parts in this film. And this thoroughly adds to the interaction between the viewer and the film as the viewer can more easily fall into the Mayan world and civilisation. Rudy Youngblood (Jaguar Paw) is excellent in leading the film and carries the burden of the viewer seeing most things from his perspective very very well.

The entire film is presented in the Mayan language, and the cinematography makes it essential viewing alone, as all of the jungle scenes and city scenes are beautifully shot. This film is not for the faint hearted and is reasonably violent but is not as extreme as the media are making it out to be.

If you haven’t seen it, go and see it. This is an epic film, in Lawrence of Arabia proportions, and should be seen in all the comfort of surround sound cinema if possible. Enjoy!